Devils Tower Trip Report (#1553)

June 26, 2000--Frank Sanders and I climbed the Durrance route in the morning and Soler in the afternoon. We sat on top, enjoying the sun. It was hard to believe that it had been over 22 years since our first climb together on the Tower. Frank and Terry Rypkema had taken me on my first climb in March of 1978. I had wanted to climb it once--just to see what it looked like on top. I was overwhelmed by the experience. That was over 100 Tower climbs ago, most of them made with Frank Sanders who taught me not only the art of climbing all sizes and shapes of cracks, but gave me a solid background in the nearly lost art of direct aid climbing. Together we did a variety of routes, including first ascents on all faces of the Tower. They were good climbs, some relaxed and easy, others challenging us to the limits of our physical and mental endurance, but all were great days on the rock, fulfilling dreams, building friendships, and creating memories. Best of all, there are more days like them in the future.